That Which We Call a Rose
by AngelontheGround
Summary: An AU idea I've been kicking around for a while... Ruby and Yang have been living on the streets for about 7 months now. They've been just going through the motions, stealing to eat, scrounging a life out of the unforgiving streets. But when they meet a pair of other runaways, and begin to see the dark shadows behind the romance of the street life, everything changes...
1. A Rose

**A/N: I'm kinda just airing out an AU idea I've had for a while... let me know If you think I should run with it or if it's just complete shite.**

**Shoutout to FKim on the RT site for making the cover picture. He has no idea I exist. But Y'know. Wonders of google. **

The arrival of the sun announced a new morning to the city of Vale, bringing with it a light morning shower; it was more a mist than anything, though. Most of the inhabitants of the city would admire the way the light shone and refracted through the tiny droplets, shining like so many gemstones, but-

"GODDAMMIT!"

-not Ruby Rose.

A blob of red and black that was propped up under a fire escape wriggled around -looking very much like a landed fish- until a hand finally managed to escape. It yanked the hood of an old, very careworn red hoodie down off of its owner's face, releasing a shock of red-tinged black hair that proofed outwards and fought valiantly to maintain its unruliness until a set of fingers managed to comb it down. A yawn stretched the 16-year-old 's mouth and bright silver eyes were blinked to clear them of the wateriness which inevitably followed. Struggling to her feet, Ruby stretched, reveling in the feeling of her stiff muscles being loosened. Her morning routine thus completed, she glanced around; looking for the source of the inordinate amount of water that had landed on her head a scant 10 minutes ago and waking her so rudely.

It wasn't a long search.

On the first landing of the fire escape, there lay a blob very similar to what Ruby had looked like a couple minuted before. However, this blob was coloured differently and was somewhat...bigger.

Said blob blinked. She had been having quite a nice dream, that is, until her alarm clock had started...Yelling...At her...Wait a second...

Ruby, meanwhile, had given up on yelling. Well, not quite given up. She supplemented her yelling by just picking up random objects found on the ground: a rock and some cans, among other bits and pieces, and heaving them at the yellow/black blob on the fire escape. Who, unfortunately, happened to be her sister.

Yang for her part, happened to be completely innocent. The rainwater had simply pooled on a stair of the fire escape and overflowed onto the unfortunate Ruby.

Several bickers and swapped insults later, they both stood in the mouth of the alleyway they had stayed the night in. Hands stuffed deep into the pocket of her customary red pullover hoodie, Ruby stared out into the street; entranced, as always, by the sights and sound of the city waking up. As she always did before starting a new day, she flicked her hair back over her shoulder and touched the scar that curved down the left side of her neck and under the back of her shirt, reminding herself of one important fact that never seemed to stick in her head: This city, while beautiful and full of wonders, is also a dark and dangerous place.

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><p>Ruby and Yang strolled down the main street in Vale, heading towards a particular mall. There were many others closer and larger than this one, but this one had notably lax security. The sisters weren't particularly fond of stealing, but ever since they had escaped they had had to eat <em>somehow. <em>So, the two made a living by, among other things, boosting small electronics from stores and selling them to someone who took them apart to sell the technology inside. Sometimes though, they kept one for Ruby to tinker with. Not only a talented artist, which got her in trouble sometimes as she lived in the streets with just her sister and had relatively easy access to spray paint; she was also quite the technological genius._  
><em>

As they reached the entrance to the mall, Yang took her sister by the shoulder to explain what they were doing. AGAIN. After doing this for close to half a year now, Ruby was considerably irritated at her sister's overprotective urges, which struck at times like this. Ruby shrugged her sister's hand off with a sigh. "Yang, I know what we're doing! Let's just get it done."

That done with, the sisters waltzed into the store, observing everything without being too obvious about it. They took stock of the waist-high display cases, the tired-looking clerk behind the counter who kept glancing at his watch, and the two other customers in the store: another pair of girls standing in a back corner around a laptop, talking. They struck Ruby as an odd pair, one in black and the other in white. Now that she looked more closely, the one in white was quite a looker. That colour of hair couldn't be natural, could it? Now quite distracted, Ruby shook her head to clear it and mentally prepared herself for the first job of the day. She wandered through the store, seemingly browsing, but in reality was tucking small bits of tech in her conveniently baggy sleeves. After what seemed like an age, she reached the final article of the run: a smartphone. She only ever took one smartphone from each store they stole from, sort of a easy of controlling herself. Slipping the phone up her sleeve as Yang finally stopped chatting up the clerk, even though his eyes remained glued to her... assets.

With a smile and a friendly wave to the shopkeep, they started out the door. Ruby glanced back over her shoulder to see if anyone in the store was showing any sign of suspicion... and met the most stunning pair of ice-blue eyes she had ever seen. In that moment, she forgot everything. Where she was, what she was doing there...and the 300 lien smartphone up her sleeve. As Ruby let her arms drop to her sides, mesmerized by those eyes, the sleeves of her hoodie loosened around her arms and allowed the sleek phone to drop to the floor with a distinct **_clatter_ **that only a phone like that could make. The clerk's eyes, which had just refocused, snapped up at the sound, searching for the cause. When he saw the phone lying just inside the door, his eyes widened, all fantasies forgotten. He rushed out from behind his counter, his mouth forming the customary cry of "Stop! Thief!" but failed to notice a multitude of things.

First, the fact that he was a middle-aged, slightly portly man that was trying to outrun a pair of fit teenagers. Second, and probably more important, the slender, black-clad leg that appeared in front of his ankles. Before he could get his words out of his mouth, said leg hooked itself around his ankles and tugged slightly, sending him sprawling. The owner of the foot, meanwhile, already had her companion by the wrist and had that DustBook laptop cradled under the other arm, waltzing towards the entrance. As the duo passed Ruby and Yang in the doorway, the black-clad girl paused only to toss an amber-eyed wink at Yang and whisper "I'd run."

So they did.

**A/N: Well, first chapter...I'm going to try to upload a new chapter at least once a week, maybe more, but I might miss by a couple days 'cause I've got school and stuff, so please don't kill me if I'm a little late. Thanks for all the reviews and your support, I'm looking forward to writing for all you beautiful people in the future. **

**-Ai**


	2. What's in a name?

**A/N: Well...I did say that I'd put out maybe twice a week, but I stayed up all night writing and I have absolutely 0 patience, so here it is! You guys keep on reading and reviewing and I'll keep on writing! **

Ruby ducked and wove, twisting and turning between pedestrians as she sprinted away from the mall. She had always been fast, much to the exasperation of her older sister, but ever since they had run away Ruby had done nothing but get faster. Spotting a dumpster in a nearby alleyway, she made for it, hoping to make a jump from it into the scaffold she could make out beside it, and from there onto the low rooftops. From there, she could get to meeting place that had been established that morning, just in case she and Yang were separated. Closing on the dumpster, Ruby took an extra-long stride, packing all the power she could into this jump.

She flew up and over the dumpster, aiming for the far metal lip; she was all too aware of the fact that the plastic could NOT take the stress of her landing on it. As she descended, Ruby could see that her aim, as always, was perfect. She extended her leg, prepared to land and make the jump to the scaffold without even pausing. Her foot made contact with the cold metal, still slightly slick from this morning's shower-

"Hey! What are _you_ doing here?!"

Ruby's head snapped around to find the source of the voice, but as her head turned her torso turned with it, and her foot slipped. She got a feeling of vertigo as her momentum carried her forward and down, and the only thing that went through her mind was, _I fell. _She _never_ fell. Not for as long as she could remember.

Her feet had finally betrayed her, let her fall to the ground and slow to a stop. For all this time since she had run away, she hadn't stopped moving. If she kept moving, then the sadness couldn't keep up. She closed her eyes, knowing for sure now that nothing could keep the sadness away, that no matter how fast or far she ran, her ghosts, her demons would always catch up to her in the end. Her head made contact with the unforgiving metal with a sickening _crunch_, and she landed on the damp, cold pavement with hardly a sound.

A touch on her shoulder made her force open her eyes, and the last thing she saw before she passed out was a pair of concerned eyes.

_Huh._ She blinked. _Blue_.

* * *

><p>Yang didn't run. She walked with a purpose, radiating such a forceful persona that everyone knew to get out of her way and stay there. She was pissed, that much was clear. Ruby had run off AGAIN. And now Yang was lost, unable to remember the meeting place they had set up that morning.<p>

She remembered with no small amount of exasperation the beautiful motorcycle, named Bumblebee, that she had left behind when she ran away. As much as she had longed to bring it with her, she left it because it was rather...distinctive. A black and yellow Kawasaki Ninja with a large black flaming heart emblem emblazoned in the side, they would've been found out immediately. Lost in her thoughts, Yang's feet led themselves absently through the streets. Making turns at random, she found herself walking down Beacon Avenue, one of the busier streets in Vale.

Absent-mindedly weaving through the crush of people, all with their own places to go, albeit far too slowly, she heard shouting. Snapping herself out of he reverie, she moved towards the source of the commotion. As she neared the cause of the panic, the crowed around her slowed and stopped entirely. Elbowing her way through the crowd, Yang finally reached the edge of the crowd, in which had opened a small, circular clearing. She was about to push into the circle, but her feet hit an obstruction. Lying at her feet was an unconscious man, who appeared to be in his forties, sprawled across the pavement.

Standing over him was the girl in black from the store. Now that Yang could get a better look at her, she was wearing a black zip-up hoodie, white shorts, and black leggings. What made Yang gape in surprise, however, was the long, dangerous-looking knife she held in her right hand, the non-pointy end facing out. Glancing back down at the man at her feet, she could make out a rectangular mark on his temple, already bruising. Yang nodded, impressed.

As if noticing the crowd around her for the first time, the raven-haired girl straightened up and spun the knife in her hand before tucking it point-first up her sleeve. Glancing around at the crowd, she gestured to the man on the ground.

"He touched me."

She said it without much emotion, but for some reason that statement pissed Yang off all over again. She shrugged it off, chalking it up to a sympathetic rage for another girl. Said black-clad girl, upon noticing her, gave her a nod and spun on her heel, walking away. On an impulse, Yang followed. Not getting too close, she followed the girl through the streets, noticing that they were getting closer to the place where she and Ruby had spent the night. It was close enough to the business sector of the city that it wasn't too dangerous, but it still had an abundance of back alleys to sleep in.

After some time, the black haired-girl called back "Why are you following me?" Without so much as breaking stride or even throwing a glance Yang's way.

Yang shrugged. "I'm lost. I'm supposed to meet my little sister somewhere After we got split up in that crowd, but I forgot where. Following you seemed as good a shot as any."

"Your sister?"

"Yeah. Ruby. Speaking of which, where's that girl you were with? Y'know , the one in white?"

Still walking, the raven-haired girl shook her head. "We were separated too. However, I remember our meeting place."

Yang shook her head in exasperation. "Thanks for the help there, by the way. I thought we were screwed for sure."

"It's not a big deal. I've been in that situation a couple times, and I would've appreciated a little help like that, so I thought I'd lend a hand." The girl shrugged. "Why were you stealing that much, anyway? I saw the little red one...Ruby, was it? I saw her pocketing all the tech she could get her hands on."

Yang glanced down, embarrassed. "Well...we've gotta eat somehow, yeah?"

The other girl stopped suddenly that Yang nearly walked into her. She turned to face Yang, and her strikingly amber eyes -which had been so hard when Yang saw her standing over that man- softened.

"You...have to eat? Don't your parents feed you?"

Yang shrugged, not used to talking to others about this. "Well, me and Rubes don't have parents anymore. They died about 8 months ago. They were out walking, and some guy hit them with his car. Apparently he was so drunk he didn't even notice it. We stated with a family friend for a couple weeks, until we heard them talking with child services workers about splitting me and my sister up in foster care or adoption or something. So we decided to run away before they could do that to us. We have to feed ourselves now.

We only have each other." By now Yang's voice was heavy with grief, and she studied the sidewalk, convinced that she had turned her new friend away. Who wants to be friends with a street kid, anyway? she felt a touch on her shoulder. Yang looked up, her lilac eyes meeting catlike amber eyes full of sympathy.

"We...only have each other too."

Yang blinked. "Huh?"

"Yeah. My parents died as well. Long ago, though."

Yang looked down again. "Well...maybe you don't have to be alone anymore." She looked back up, regaining her usual confidence. "You And your partner can come with us! You can be part of our family!" She stuck out a hand. "I'm Yang! Nice to meetcha!"

The dark-haired girl couldn't help but crack a smile at the blonde's natural exuberance, and clasped her hand. "Blake."

Yang grinned, looking over her new friend. _Her smile is the only thing prettier than those eyes..._

**A/N: there it is...Again, thanks so much for your support and since I already have some of chapter three written, I'll try to get it out soon. And if you have any questions or suggestions or just wanna say hi, feel free to PM me. _(I'm definitely not just wanting to talk to people cause I spend all my free time writing I don't know what you're talking about...)_**

**_-_Ai**


	3. Wherefore art thou, Blakey-o?

**A/N: Okay so I meant to put this out last night, but my ******* parents wouldn't let me get on the ipad to get to fanfiction... *Ahem* Yeah so here it is! Chapter Three! Enjoy, and don't forget to review!**

**Edit: OH MY GOD well as soon as I posted this I got to 1K views on this story! Thanks so much! **

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><p>Ruby awoke to a searing pain in her head. Blinking rapidly -as if that would help- she sat up. Or tried to. As soon as her head lifted above the level of her chest, she felt vertigo and her spinning head dumped her back on the ground. She clutched her head, more in annoyance that she couldn't get up rather than pain. Pain, she was used to. As she was about to attempt standing again, she heard a somewhat...<em>harsh<em> voice coming from somewhere behind her.

"You dolt! Don't try to move, you'll only make it worse!"

Ruby groaned, forcing her eyes open again. From what she could see without moving her head, she was in an alley, her head propped up against something soft. What was that? It felt so familiar...Then Ruby felt a chill breeze on her exposed arms and realized that it was her hoodie that she was lying on. For a moment she considered chewing out this girl for taking her beloved hoodie off, but then thought better of it. After all, she was just trying to help. Instead of trying to get up again, Ruby opted to try to talk.

"Um...OW! MY GODDAMN HEAD!" She touched her temple lightly, wondering why it hurt so much. "Hi...Where am I?"

The unseen person behind her let out an exasperated sigh. "In the same place you were when you hit your head, you dunce. You're not exactly in a condition to be moved. And I really don't want to be vomited on."

At that, Ruby frowned. "Listen, _princess_, I don't just puke on people. Unless I _want_ to puke on them."

"Oh, really?" A white shoe slid into Ruby's field of view, being held gingerly by a delicate forefinger and thumb. Splattered on the tongue was the unmistakeable shape and color of a vomit stain.

Ruby flushed the same color as the flower for which she was named and stammered, "B-b-but I-I..."

The mysterious person snorted. "Exactly. Now, why were you running through here like a maniac?"

Ruby sighed. "Well, y'see, I was going to the place to meet up with my sister 'cause we got split up and I figured it'd be easier to run up on the roofs than on the streets cause the roofs aren't as crowded generally haha and I was running to jump on the dumpster and onto the scaffold but then I...slipped. Wait a minute. Why're _you_ here?"

"I am here because this is where I live. I was separated from my sister as well, and she told me to meet her here if we were split up."

"You sister? The one in black? Ooh, the one who tripped that fat clerk that was coming after me?"

The unseen girl sighed. "Yes, that one."

"Huh. That's funny, you two look nothing alike 'cause y'know she's in black and you're the one in white I assume and are you two really sisters? But then again me and Yang look nothing alike either and people always look surprised when we say we're sisters and it's really annoying and- Wait a sec. Did you say you _lived_ here?"

"For tonight, at least."

Ruby's voice slowed from its typical mile-a-minute pace to something more sedate. "You mean...You don't have a home either?"

The other girl sighed. "No, I don- wait. Either?"

Ruby nodded, or at least tried to. "Me and Yang ran away. After our parents died."

The voice seemed to be at a loss for words. "We ran away too. My father...well, let's just say he wasn't the best."

Ruby heard the soft noises of the person behind her getting to her feet. Before she could speak up, afraid her new...companion was going to leave, she spoke.

"It's getting dark. Blake should have been back by now."

"Blake?"

"My...sister."

"Oh." Ruby blinked. "Oh! I forgot to introduce myself! Yang's always telling me I should introduce myself first, and then start talking, cause apparently I talk a lot or at least she thinks so, do you think I talk a lot? I don't think I talk a lot 'caus-" Ruby cut herself off mid-sentence. "Maybe I do talk a lot. Huh. Anyway, I'm Ruby Rose!"

Ruby heard the light tread of feet as the other girl moved into her field of view. Her hair was pure, snow white. She wore a white sweater and a pair of black jeans, which somehow both seemed modest and accentuated her body. Her eyes, the same eyes which distracted Ruby in the store, were ice-blue...but somehow warm.

"Weiss."

Ruby grinned. "Now that that's out of the way, could you help me up?"

Weiss shook her head instantly. "No. You not getting up unless you do it yourself, or you are going to sit there until you can."

The redhead pouted. "Aw..."

The snowy-haired girl stood off as Ruby heaved herself to her feet with much swearing and stumbles. Weiss shook her head at the girl's willfulness as she heard a familiar voice coming from the mouth of the alley.

"Weiss. Sorry I'm late."

Weiss let out a sigh. "Finally, Blake. Honestly, what could keep you so lo-"

"RUBY!" Yang sprinted forward, full of relief that her sister was okay. As she moved to tacklehug her, she skidded to a stop as she noticed Ruby clutching her head.

"N-not so loud, Yang...my head's killing me."

Yang frowned at this. Not many things could keep Ruby down, and even fewer could make her refuse a hug. Her lavender eyes narrowed with suspicion as she fixed them on Weiss with the most threatening glare she could muster.

"Did you...hurt my sister?"

Weiss snorted, unimpressed. "Hardly. The dunce here," she gestured to the moaning Ruby, "slipped when she tried to jump off the dumpster."

Yang sighed and shook her head, losing the threatening look. "That does sound like her...but wait a second. She _fell_? By herself?"

The white-haired girl nodded, confused. "Yes, why?"

Yang froze. The thought that her sister would fall unassisted was a completely foreign one to her. Her sister had always been the kid with the best balance and the fastest time; to think that she slipped on such a simple jump was unthinkable. _Unless_...Yang glanced sidelong at Weiss. _So that's what happened. Rubes'd never admit it, of course, but I can tell._ Assuming an unconcerned demeanor, she sighed. "Rubes, how many times...look before you leap!"

"Not my fault! She distracted me!"

Yang chuckled to herself. _Just as I thought._

Already aware of the dynamic between the sisters, and cautious of their apparent tendency to bicker, Blake stepped in between the two. "Do you two have anywhere to stay for the night?"

Ruby shook her head. "Nope."

Surprisingly, Weiss stepped in to correct her. "Yes, you do. You two are staying here."

Her tone brooked no argument, but that didn't stop Ruby from trying. "B-but we couldn't do that to you! It's hard enough sleeping with two people for us, think about four..." She trailed off, noticing Weiss and Blake listening to every word and not changing their minds a bit.

Blake offered one last word of conviction. "We have sleeping bags-!"

Yang slapped a palm over her sister's mouth as she tried to argue again and shouted, "We're staying!"

* * *

><p>Long after the the others had fallen asleep, Ruby remained awake. Looking around the alley, to anyone who didn't know better it would look like four homeless kids sleeping in an alley, four kids who lied and stole and were incapable of loving. Sure, they stole. Sure, they had to lie. But these four were a family now, brought together by a bond that binds people closer than anything else. A bond of trust, honesty, and -even if they hadn't realized it yet- love.<p>

Ruby smiled to herself, pressing closer to Yang in the sleeping bag they shared. They're had just met, but she could tell that these two would be as close as sisters to her.

Maybe one of them could be a little closer.


	4. Parting is such sweet sorrow

**A/N: Well, I'm finally back... just in time for Christmas, too! I'd like to apologize for keeping all of you waiting, I've been meaning to get this up for a while but I haven't been able to get onto a computer... Which is mostly my fault. I've really missed writing these idiots... but what with my concussion and stitches in my hand and all, I haven't been able to do much. So, thank you beautiful people soo much for sticking with me through this, and I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint! As always, please read and review, and let me know how I'm doing! **

Ruby awoke that first morning much more comfortable than she was used to. What were these things...pillows?! Back at home, they had always had the best pillows, soft and warm and perfect, just as these were. She bounced her head on them lightly, reminiscing about home and blinking away all the painful memories that brought with it. She let out a small sigh and blinked away the last of the tears, smiling softly. She was amazed at Weiss and Blake for finding such pillows, they sisters had always had a hard time...finding...them...

Ruby felt her delightful pillows moving beneath her head and let out a small moue of surprise before the dreadful realization set in, and she felt the pillows vibrate as they spoke.

"Uh...Rubes?"

_Shit._..

Ruby quite hastily removed her face from Yang's...ample chest, only to find herself tangled in the sleeping bag that she had shared her elder sister. She thrashed about, doing an excellent impression of a suffocating fish out of water, trying desperately to find the zipper of this damn thing. She could _feel_ the thing pressing against the small of her back, where her shirt had ridden up while she slept, but she couldn't get a hold on if for the life of her. The spectacular racket that the sisters were making gradually roused Weiss and Blake from their own sleeping bag. Somehow, they managed to extract themselves from their quarters **without **entangling themselves, and they stood at a safe distance from the thrashing siblings, amusement writ across their faces. Eventually, Blake decided that enough was enough. Wary of the madly flailing limbs, she moved to the bottom of the sleeping bag and grabbed hold.

Yang, who had just found the zipper, felt the sudden grip down by her toes and realized just a second too late what was going on. She just managed to eke out a "No, Bla-" before her bare arms and legs went from the warmth and comfort of the sleeping bag to the cold, rough, dew-ridden asphalt surface of the alleyway. Yang stared up at her aggressor with the most pitiful puppy-dog face that she could muster. Blake was unmoved.

Eventually, Yang gave up and stood, leaning against the slightly less wet, but much more cold surface of the dumpster that crowded the alley. She tossed a lopsided grin in Weiss and Blake's direction and sheepishly ran a hand through her hair.

"Uhm... Morning?"

Weiss and Blake both nodded a greeting, doing their best not to laugh at the nonchalant manner that the blonde greeted them after her rude awakening; even so, they were a bit disgruntled at the manner of their wake-up this morning, no matter how amusing. Somewhat disheartened at the lack of enthusiasm towards her greeting, the bubbly blonde tried a different approach.

"So... How'd you sleep?"

Blake shrugged and Weiss replied with a curt "Fine."

Defeated, Yang's shoulders slumped as a clatter came from above, and the trio looked up to see Ruby hanging from the scaffold by her feet, swinging gently back and forth. Weiss stepped forward with a shocked expression on her face and even Blake looked a bit surprised, but Yang was unconcerned.

"Don't worry, she does this all the time..."

Ruby grinned at Yang's demeanor when she knew perfectly well that her older sister was anything but unconcerned at the sight. Playing with her a bit, she unhooked one of her feet from the bar, relishing the expression of hastily concealed terror that shot across her sister's face. She was about to go farther when she saw the look of horror on Weiss's face and one of mild concern on Blake's and realized that that would be going too far. She replaced her foot and swung back and forth, eventually gaining enough momentum to swing herself up into a sitting position on the bar.

"I slept perfectly fine, until Yang's boobs woke me up!"

Weiss snorted and Blake cracked a smile at this statement. Mortified, Yang felt a slight heat in her face and turned to her sister, her pride in her...assets...allowing no further insults. Casting about for a stinging retort, she grinned evilly.

"Oh yeah, lil' sis?" Yang challenged, her arms crossed, "I think you're just _jealous._"

As soon as the words left, her mouth, Yang slapped a palm over her mouth, trying to stuff back in the words that had already escaped, trying to take them back at any cost, knowing the damage it did to her sister whenever she brought up memories of their mother...

Ruby froze. She just looked at her older sister, not registering the dawning horror in her eyes as Yang realized what she had said. Surprised tears brimming in her eyes, and hurt written all over her face.

"Y-You promised you wouldn't bring that up anymore!"

Still stunned, Yang could only get out "Ruby, I'm sor-" before her beloved younger sister spun and vanished onto the rooftops.

* * *

><p>Ruby dashed along the flat rooftops, the damp concrete both stinging and soothing her bare feet. She struggled to keep her eyes from misting over with tears, desperately trying to keep her vision clear. <em>Why would she say that? <em>_She _**_promised _**_not to bring that up! _She shook her head to clear it, sending stray tears flying as she ran, running to escape those words, to outrun the memories, to run, run, run. She ran for who knows how long, leaping buildings, making turns at random, coming close to falling often. She leaped the gap between two buildings, the ground flashing by far, far below, the rough gravel slicing her feet to shreds on landing. The pain cut through the miasma of grief and misery that had taken her over, jolting her back to her senses as her blood stained the stones red. As she looked around she felt fear and uncertainty hit her like a punch to the gut as she realized that she was in a part of town that was unfamiliar to her. She glanced around nervously, uncertainly, casting about for a way to get off the building and back to somewhere she recognized, as she had no idea where she had come from. Her eyes lit upon several sketchy-looking bars, a lot of homeless people and... was that a strip club?! Ruby shuddered as she continued to search for a safe way off the roofs. Once she was on the ground, maybe she could ask directions...

She sighed in disgust as she spotted a dumpster filled with (hopefully) soft garbage bags and steeled herself for the 3-story drop. She stepped back a couple of paces from the ledge and took several deep breaths, preparing herself as she always did before a dive. She returned to the ledge and took one more deep breath. Then she stepped off.

Leaning back slightly to impact with her butt as she remembered learning, she windmilled her arms slightly to keep herself aligned with the dumpster. She landed with a squishy thump in something **_very _**foul-smelling, and she squeezed her eyes shut to prevent herself from seeing what it was. She waved her arms about for a bit before one of them contacted with the edge of the dumpster with a clang. Sighing in relief, Ruby heaved herself out of the dumpster and opened her eyes just in time to land on her feet, the pain as her damaged soles smacked the pavement making her wince.

All this time, poisonous thoughts were running through her head, twisting and working their way through her skull, leaving behind seeds of doubt and despair. _Why would she do that, even after we promised? She knows I hate it when she brings up mom... _Ruby started towards the mouth of the alleyway, keeping to the shadows that stretched for ages, cast by the setting sun. _Setting sun? _Had she really been gone that long? She shook her head. Yang would be worrying, but not too much. Weiss, though... Ruby remembered with a flash of guilt the terrified and frantically worried look that had passed over the white-clad girl's face as she had turned and ran. A surge of emotion shot through Ruby at the thought of this girl, and she reeled in surprise at the strength of it. Dazed, she Missed the slight crunch of a foot on the asphalt behind her, missed the heavy breathing of someone whose veins were coursing with the adrenaline of the hunt. Ruby snapped out of her stupor just a second too late, just in time to see a dark object come hurtling out of the shadows and smash into her head before clattering to the pavement with the sound of ringing metal. _Is that a trash-can lid? _Was the only thing Ruby had time to think before a whole city's worth of fireworks ignited in her head. A friendly face swam in Ruby's hazy mind, with a loving smile and a tender heart. "M-mom?"

And then it was black.

**A/N: So, there it is... again, thanks so much for sticking with me, and I'll try to get the next chapter out soon!**

**Happy Holidays!**

**~Ai**


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